2010 Race Reports

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Not only was this the club’s first time at this spectacular racing venue, but it was also the start of VDCA’s tenth season of vintage racing. It seems like only yesterday that a few of us were specially invited to a trial balloon at Roebling Road Raceway near Savannah, GA in 1999 to see if there was enough interest in a new kind of vintage racing group. There was, and here we are. Let’s just hope that the success of this event leads to another race weekend at this fabulous track next year, maybe even a little further into the year when we might be assured of warmer weather rather than trusting to the good luck we experienced this year. Ray Morgan, with the help of many motivated and industrious members and friends, was able to convince the Road Atlanta folks to give us a chance. It seemed like everyone was happy with the results. Thanks, Ray – great job!

There is almost always a story good enough to be repeated at every race weekend. The best one I’ve heard in a long time involves Dennis Gonzalez, new to vintage racing. Dennis lives in Puerto Rico where there isn’t much vintage racing going on. His car is a new-to-him 1966 Austin Healey Sprite that fits right in with VDCA’s Group 1 Sprite and Midget gang. He made complicated plans to fly to Atlanta, take the Skip Barber School at Road Atlanta in the Sprite, get his vintage driver’s license, and then continue his week by entering the VDCA event. Who would have thunk that the School would have to be cancelled because of an unheard of 6 inches of snow at the track? Either through Dennis’s superior powers of persuasion or Skip Barber’s magnanimousness, Dennis was flown out to Laguna Seca to attend the Barber school there, then back to Atlanta to make the race with his newly earned ticket to fun. He made all the practice and race sessions as well as the Enduro. No trophies yet, just a race license and a big grin. Priceless! What could have been a big loss of time and money, not to mention opportunity, turned out to be a wonderful and heart warming story.

Even though this was a two-day race weekend, Friday was available for registration, paddock set-up, and tech inspection, but most importantly, it was another opportunity for an evening party. Vintage racer Fred Burke and his Porsche-phile buddy Jerry Peters opened their shop across from the track for a pizza party. In addition to plenty of pizza, salad, and drinks, Fred displayed his Cooper Climax powered Turner and the Ferrari V-12 powered Cooper-Monaco he would be racing this weekend. Jerry displayed his collection of Porsches, from early models to contemporary race cars and street cars.

VDCA continued its symbiotic relationship with the BMWCCA by sharing track time and expenses with the Peachtree Chapter. A Porsche Driver Education class also joined in on the fun. Spectators saw quite a combination of vintage cars and contemporary BMW racers, as well as an eclectic mix of cars in the Porsche group. The usual nine vintage race groups were combined into three groups so that everybody could get a satisfying amount of time on the track. VDCA members got two 30 minute practice sessions and a one hour endurance race on Saturday and a twenty- five minute practice and thirty minute race on Sunday. Our BMW Buddies and the Porsche drivers, likewise, got plenty of track time. After a very uncharacteristically beautiful day for February full of practice sessions, qualifying races, and enduros, everyone was ready for the culmination of the weekend, the feature races on Sunday afternoon.

But Saturday wasn’t over yet! World famous racer and racing entrepreneur Dick Barbour hosted the Saturday evening dinner and festivities at the Dick Barbour Racing shops adjacent to the track. A sumptuous Mexican dinner was provided as well as appropriate liquids of all kinds. Ed Conway, the Road Atlanta track announcer for the past 40 something years provided some interesting history and stories about Road Atlanta and racing there. Ed was also the moderator of a pleasantly long and entertaining question and answer session in which Dick told us some interesting stories and anecdotes from his racing career. It was truly amazing to listen to his anecdotes reminiscences of his life in racing and his first hand stories about Paul Newman, Jo Sieffert, Steve McQueen and many others of our heroes The list of who he drove with, who drove for him, where he raced, and what he raced during his own illustrious career was enthralling. Original posters from the famous races Dick drove in, was involved with or just spectated at covered virtually every inch of available wall space in the shop, the halls, and the offices.

Race Group 1 was composed of the smaller displacement production cars, sports racers and the numerous and ubiquitous Formula Vees from Groups 1, 4, and 9. Most of the racing took place mid-pack and beyond as the same four cars paraded around at the front. Glenn Stephens in his Class 4FM 1956 Lotus XI ran first and steadily decreased his lap times in every session. Rob Stewart in his 1FP 1967 Spitfire did the same in second place. Likewise for Doug Meis in his 1GP 1967 Honda S800. Jack Cassingham in his 1FP MG Midget came forward when it counted and passed Mike Jackson in his 1969 Shadowfax FV at the start before Mike could work up a head of steam. Finishing order was Stephens, Stewart, Meis, Cassingham, and Jackson.

Race Group 2 included Groups 2, 5, and 7, for 1600cc Formula Fords and sports racers. Since a few cars didn’t make the race grid, it was all FFs. But at least we got to see Tom Mittler’s 1963 2.0L Porsche 904 GTS practice. Gordon King also had the ex-Dave Bondon Royale RP4 out to stretch its legs a bit. Dave Handy, Jeff Horne, Cecil Boyd, and Gary Diver started and finished in that order, with a few passes thrown in for excitement during the 10 lap race.

Race Group 3 included a rather eclectic 32 car collection of just about everything else, mostly larger displacement production cars from Groups 3, 6, and 8. The only American car in this large group was a 1966 Ford Mustang notchback driven to first place in everything he raced in except the Enduro (he was second there) by Tim Holland. Ray Morgan lost some transmission gears on Saturday, but came back on Sunday with a full set in his 1965 Merlyn MK6 to start third and finish second, ahead of a couple of Porsche 911s driven by Warren Greene and Sid Collins. Fred Burke had that awesome Cooper Monaco/Ferrari clicking on all 12 cylinders to earn a solid fifth. Some of the other neat cars in the Group were Richard Schnabel’s Volvo P1800, Najeeb Khan and Gary Hagopian’s E-Type Jaguars, Gary Dillow’s Elan+2 and Bob Desloge’s Europa from Lotus, and Piet van Rossum’s Mercedes 230 SL.

Then there was the hour long Endurance Race. One of the greatest features of VDCA events is the all-comers enduro included in the entry fee. Forty-eight racers decided to wear themselves and their co-drivers out by having an hour’s worth of fun and 32 laps of additional excitement on the 2.54 miles and 12 turns of Road Atlanta and the required five minutes in the pits. Dave Handy, in his Lola T200FF led the first 17 laps and then pitted. All the rest of the top leaders followed his lead off the track, too and pitted one lap later. Dave’s shadow, Tim Holland in the Mustang, resumed his position after the break and they finished in that order. Sid Collins started his Porsche 911 in seventh spot, dropped back a little, but then pitted early at lap 12. He must have found some go juice as he quickly worked his way up to third where he finished. Glenn Stephens, in the bright red Lotus XI took a little different strategy but it worked well for him. Starting tenth, he ran between eighth and eleventh until he started a steady climbing to first while the previous leaders pitted and then tried to climb back into the lead. Glenn pitted late and came out in fifth where he finished a satisfying drive.

For many of the vintage racers who took a chance on the weather and came out to Road Atlanta, this was their first time at the track. For others who have been racing with VDCA for the last ten years, this was an opportunity to combine their favorite track with their favorite race group. For all of us, it was our favorite kind of weather and the best way to spend a weekend with our friends doing what we like to do most--VINTAGE RACE!